Journal 78

[Kate Mary]

Mine has arrived. Only been able to glance through it so far as I've got a very busy day, but it has a lovely cover.

[Judith Crabb]

I have an even greater impatience to get the journal this time because I can hardly believe my luck. Tony has chosen the frontispiece of my favourite Blyton (well, one of them) 'Boys' and Girls' Circus Book', as the brilliant cover illustration for Journal 78. My very precious copy of this book is lacking only its frontispiece. Now, with the genius of the local copy centre I intend to re-create the missing frontis. Can't wait, but I'll have to. (I sent a parcel express to USA and it reached the States in a few days, but lay in the distribution centre for weeks because of Covid related delivery problems.)

[Anita Bensoussane]

Hope your Journal doesn't take too long to arrive, Judith. That frontispiece makes a super Journal cover. Up until now I've only read the Latimer House version of Boys' and Girls' Circus Book, which has been retitled Enid Blyton's Circus Book and is nowhere near as sumptuous. However, Tony has now lent me his Boys' and Girls' Circus Book and it's a real pleasure to read, being a chunky volume with large type, packed with Hilda McGavin illustrations. I'm jotting down points of interest in preparation for writing an article on it for a future Journal.

Will comment on the current Journal when I have time but it's another great issue!

[Courtenay]

Hooray, my Journal has arrived too! It looks just wonderful and I'm looking forward to delving into it. Many thanks as always, Tony (and yes, I did see the subscription reminder with this one and have duly paid it... ).

[Boodi 2]

Mine has still not arrived, but hopefully tomorrow!!! We actually did not have any post at all today, so perhaps there is a problem in the sorting office similar to what Moonraker described.

[Hannah]

Mine isn't here yet either, Boodi.
But I think so far nobody outside the UK has written that the journal arrived.
I hope it will arrive soon. Seems as if the local post has problems again (which wouldn't be a surprise seeing that hospitals in the region have to partially close, shops have reduced opening hours etc. due to Covid and the holiday season).

[Boodi 2]

Thanks Hannah! Up to now I have been impressed by the fact that my copy of the journal arrived just as quickly as those of members in the UK, but the holiday season and Covid seem to have put a spanner in the works on this occasion.

[Wolfgang]

With all the trouble airports and airlines have finding staff and the like, and customs have to be involved now, too, I'm also not surprised about the delay.

[Judith Crabb]

I shall read your assessment of "Boys' and Girls' Circus Book' with great interest, Anita. I believe that the Latimer edition is truncated so it's good you're reading the McGavin illustrated earlier volume.

[timv]

My Journal has now arrived and I've had time to read through it; many thanks as usual to my fellow-contributors, and especially to Tony for all his hard work and his impressive knowledge of early material by Enid. Not to mention the huge number of illustrators and book covers; I think the circus book cover on this summer's issue is a classic in its style and there's a whole lot of children's book illustrators from this period who haven't got the credit they deserve. They were technically far more skilled than some of our modern cartoony illustrators, in my opinion, and had a real knack of conveying the atmosphere in the annual or story collection inside the books - and mixing up real people, live toys, and imaginary beings in an early 'magic realism' way. A missed-out artistic link between later C19th and early C20th illustrators like Arthur Rackham and modern comicbook art?

I particularly liked Helen's article on the often under-rated Ern Goon, which shows how he evolved from a slightly oafish and untrusted 'mini-PC-Goon' (is this how Enid first thought of him?) to a really nice and loyal 'Number Two' to Fatty, as he is in effect by the final book where his role is crucial. It's up for debate how much Enid changed her original intentions for him (if she did, this was a masterstroke of story-telling technique) or if she always intended to spring a surprise on those readers who accepted the Find Outers' original 'superior' scorn for him as 'not one of us' by showing him to be in fact nicer on closer acquaintance. (We often see other children through our heroes' eyes, and not in a flattering way, at first - eg Lucian in Ship of Adventure and Eileen the matron's daughter in Claudine at St Clare's. To a degree also, Cyril and Melisande in Mistletoe Farm's first chapters.)

Logically, perhaps she meant to show Ern in the first book as unsure of himself and bumblingly keen to impress the FFO by showing off, but finding this would not work and behaving more cautiously later. A quiet lesson by Enid about not taking people at face value, as the FFO do with him, and for real-life Erns about not showing off?

I also liked John's article on the first six Five books, which were seemingly written as the original intended 'full series'. They do have a certain link that is missing in later books, particularly the evolution of the initially hostile and by Book Six (Kirrin island Again) better relationship between George and her father, which is missing in later books. The later UQ is more of a stereotyped preoccupied and not very practical scientist providing storylines and secrets to be stolen than a major character. The article by Monique on Boodi the pony at Mistletoe Farm was also an interesting look at a 'minor' but memorable character; I rather liked Boodi when I first read the Mistletoe Farm books and he and independent-minded, cheeky Susan suited each other well. You never knew what was going to happen next - but I never realised that Icelandic ponies were brought to the UK for breeding so recently.

Most of the Secret Seven books are rather a blur of similar plots to me, as I read those I could get hold of once or twice when I was about eight and didn't go back to them. But Good Old Secret Seven did stand out on account of the castle (shades of the steep mound and big tower at Corfe??) and the telescope, plus Susie actually messing things up, so it was nice to revisit this thanks to John . And it was also interesting to read about Fatty and Buster's inter-action. The 'Boy Detective and Dog Who Annoys The Pompous Adults' idea may have been one of Enid's contributions to the genre, mixing comedy and drama - did it give ideas to Enid's acquaintance Malcolm Saville for his use of the Morton twins' equally feisty Scottie 'Macbeth' in the Lone Pine series in the 1950s-60s? He also had a habit at going for the 'baddies' , though less for annoying the police. The 1940s illustrations of the Find Outers also show how 'proper and well-brought-up' they were meant to be in their early appearances, as compared to the 'rougher' Ern (who would have left school earlier and only been to a state day school, and by the sound of it had not had his awkward spelling tackled successfully by a good teacher!).

[Chrissie777]

My Journal 78 arrived yesterday in the US.
Thank you, Tony!

[Chrissie777]

We (including neighbours) haven't had any post since Monday - goodness knows what the problem is.

Nigel, we've noticed that USPS only brings mail now on 4 or 5 days since the pandemic (no longer on 6 days).

[Chrissie777]

It's good to know I'm not the only non-sporty Blytonite! Actually, I did like badminton and gymnastics but not athletics or team games.

Same here, I hated sports. I only enjoyed swimming, but not any kind of ball games.
I'm just thankful that I did NOT grow up in the US where sports at high school is more important than geography or history or languages.

[Chrissie777]

I have just renewed my subscription.
Now I just have to keep my hands off the Journal till I go on holiday next weekend!!

To Wales?

[pete9012S]

Correct Chrissie!